The last of America's first astronauts has left us, but propelled by their example we know that our future here on Earth compels us to keep reaching for the heavens. On behalf of a grateful nation, Godspeed, John Glenn.

The Morning Heresy is your daily digest of news and links relevant to the secular and skeptic communities.

Angela Merkel calls for a ban on full-face veils at a rabble-rousing speech for her party's conference, veering from her earlier position in which she advocated for bans only in the most specific circumstances when absolutely necessary. CFI, being the stalwarts for freedom of expression and belief that we are, responded:

“We strongly oppose allowing religions to dictate oppressive dress codes on women, but change must come by freeing women to choose their own style of dress — not by imposing bans,” said Michael De Dora, CFI’s director of government affairs. “Targeting Muslim religious practices is a distasteful and dangerous electoral ploy to appeal to rising right-wing sentiments. Civil liberties should never be subjected to political calculus,” he added.

Although not a precious gem like the diamond, the so-called “Herkimer diamond” is itself the focus of much attention. In June 2016 I was able to add to my collection of curious stones by searching for “Herkimers” at a mine in New York state and learning more about their natural and allegedly magical properties.

The Morning Heresy is your daily digest of news and links relevant to the secular and skeptic communities.

This past Sunday, 28-year-old Edgar Maddison Welch of North Carolina barged into Comet Ping Pong, a pizza joint in D.C., armed with an assault rifle, fired at least one shot, and declared he was there to "self-investigate" the conspiracy theory that Hillary Clinton and allies were using the restaurant as a child-sex trafficking front. Welch was arrested.

The Morning Heresy is your daily digest of news and links relevant to the secular and skeptic communities.

A little good news: It looks like the Russell Amendment, which would have allowed religiously-based discrimination by federal contractors, has died in conference. We dance on its grave:

“This is an even more important victory than it might seem,” said De Dora. “The incoming administration is being staffed by figures who enthusiastically endorse discriminatory measures like this one, and those being pushed through statehouses across the country. It is imperative that we build widespread resistance today so that we are better prepared to defend the secular nature of our government against the assaults of tomorrow.”

The Morning Heresy is your daily digest of news and links relevant to the secular and skeptic communities.

At the Arizona Daily Star, Gil Shapiro pens an op-ed on the threats to secularism posed by a Trump administration, and brings us in:

Eddie Tabash, a constitutional lawyer and Chair of the Center for Inquiry, our nation’s leading secular think tank stated, “We are concerned that Christianity will be used as an excuse if not a weapon to limit and deny many Americans their Constitutional rights.”

The Morning Heresy is your daily digest of news and links relevant to the secular and skeptic communities.

As many of us feared, anti-vaxxers have been emboldened by Trump's victory, particularly their quack pseudo-prophet, Andrew Wakefield, who apparently got to meet with Trump during the campaign, and who told STAT:

For the first time in a long time, I feel very positive about this, because Donald Trump is not beholden to the pharmaceutical industry. ... He didn’t rely upon [drug makers] to get him elected. And he’s a man who seems to speak his mind and act accordingly.

Where my travels take me, I often have occasion to check out a “haunted” tavern or inn. In several months’ time in 2015–2016, for example, I visited two such places in Australia, others in Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands, Vancouver’s Gastown, and Niagara Falls, NY, and then in June 2016, the Tavern on Main in Chepachet, RI.